This blog draws on current affairs, local history, politics, international relations (esp. Africa, the Carribean and the Middle East). My work as a School Governor will creep in and my interest in genealogy and the poet Robert Bloomfield. I live in NW6 Kilburn/West Hampstead so that features too. I co-ordinate and administer the Historic Kilburn Plaque Fund as well as being a Trustee of the Kilburn Festival. Contact: ed.fordham@gmail.com facebook page: ed fordham twitter: edfordham

Thursday, 9 July 2009

St Cuthbert and the hidden plaques

This time we are in West Hampstead and Kilburn and it's St Cuhtbert's Church on Fordwych Road.

http://www.stcuthbertschurchhampstead.org.uk/welcome.htm

One of the nicest little churches it's a modern design (more of that later) but it's also quite hidden from the roadside.

The plaque on the wall is a tribute to Walter Watkins the first vicar who took over in 1882 and served for 48 (forty eight!!) years.

As well as the plaque there is the stone below which was clearly the foundation stone/topping off stone which readsTO THE GLORY OF GODTHIS STONE WAS LAID ONAUGUST 23RD 1883

Further, just in front of the church, there is one of the bells from the church which is inscribedTO THE GLORY OF GODIN LOVING MEMORY OFGEORGIANA AND MARIAN CHESSJULY 1906One of things that always interests me with ecclesiatsical history is the origin of the saint and dedication - I should confess I wrote a history of St Norbert's Catholic Church in Spalding when much younger!

So for those that don;t know St Cuthbert is one of the great English saints from the era of evangelical christian golden age of the 7th century.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Cuthbert

His feast day is 20th March - perhaps that should be the occasion for a street party in Fordwych Road?

The reason why I mentioned the design is that the architecture for the current church was by a friend of mine Jeremy Allen of West Hampstead.

1 comment:

Anonymous
said...

I wonder what the original church on the site looked like? Why was it pulled down? This new building does not look like a church at all and there is no real sense of spirituality about the place whatsoever! By the way...did you know that Dusty Springfield was born in Fordwych Road? She was then called Mary Kelly. Good Irish stock.